The Quest Newsletter

A weekly newsletter to help you live better

Read time: 3 minutes

Preview:

Quote: Time and Talents
Ideas: Go for it, Defining problems, and Laughter
Article: You Make or Break Your Life Between 5 - 7 AM
Tweet: Netflix and Blockbuster
Question: Values

Quote

Clayton Christensen on how we allocate our time and talents:

“In your life, there are going to be constant demands for your time and attention. How are you going to decide which of those demands gets resources? The trap many people fall into is to allocate their time to whoever screams loudest, and their talent to whatever offers them the fastest reward. That’s a dangerous way to build a strategy.”

Source: Clayton M. Christensen, How Will You Measure Your Life

Related to this is the Eisenhower Matrix that was popularized in Stephen Covey’s book 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.

Non-Urgent, Important tasks are key to a successful life and yet they often get crowded out by the Urgent, Important and Urgent, Non-Important.

We have to schedule our priorities, not merely prioritize our schedule.

Ideas From Me

I.

332,638 people die each day around the world.

A lot of these people wake up each day unaware it will be their last.

We are not guaranteed another breath.

If there is something you want to do with your life, go do it.

No more waiting.

Be bold.
Love deeply.
Live with purpose.

II.

Problems are hard to solve when they're vague.

The more accurately you define the problem, the more easily you can find the solution.

"I'm tired" can have hundreds of causes.
"I haven't been sleeping well" allows you to work on a solution.

As the saying goes: "A problem well put is half solved."

III.

What wonder drug does all of this?

- Relieves pain
- Reduces stress
- Improves mood
- Increases lifespan
- Increases blood flow
- Strengthens immune system

Laughter

Cost? Free
Contagious? Yes
Side effects? None (unless you count dying of laughter)

Let's laugh more today.

Article

“The purpose of a morning routine is to stop the repeating past. It’s to put yourself in a position of growth and development so that you have a new and consciously-developing future — one that you are writing the script to, regardless of what has happened in the past.”

Tweet

Short story from one of the Netflix Co-Founders about how Blockbuster laughed them out of the room for asking for $50 Million.

20 years later?

Netflix worth $150 Billion.

Blockbuster has one store.

Question

If someone couldn’t hear you talk but could only see how you spend your time and your money, what would they say is important to you?

Is that what’s most important to you? If not, what adjustments can you make to better reflect your values?



If you enjoyed today’s newsletter, feel free to share it with family, friends, or colleagues.

Make it a great weekend.

Much love,

Beau Burns


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